The Only Exception
by MirandaNicoleL
Summary: Bay goes through her life with heart-broken and divorced parents, thinking that love isn't real. Little does she know that there is one exception to her belief. I used the character names and a little bit of background info from "Switched at Birth" and the plot is from the song "The Only Exception" by Paramore. Also, there are no spoilers for "Switched at Birth" to worry about.
1. Chapter 1

**The Only Exception**

**Disclaimer.. **The characters and the song are not mine. The character's names and a little bit of their background info belongs to the creator of Switched at Birth, one of my favorite TV series on ABC Family. The title of my story and the plot belongs to the song The Only Exception by one of my favorite bands, Paramore.

**Please leave reviews. **I want to hear what you think so far.** Also,** I'm still in school, so my schedule is hectic, but I will try to post as often as I can.

**Chapter 1:**

I grabbed the red crayon to finish coloring Ariel's hair. She is my favorite Disney Princess, next to Belle. Mom just bought me a new coloring book since I finished coloring everything in the last one. Our fridge in the kitchen is constantly covered with my pictures. I don't even know what color the actual fridge is anymore.

As I set down the box of crayons and began to color, I heard my dad yell out my name. Assuming that he is calling me, I set down the crayon and walked out of my room and towards the top of the stairs. Normally, I would yell out, "Yes, Daddy?" But this time, I could hear Mom talking kind of loudly to my dad. They have been fighting a lot lately, and if this argument is anything like the last four or five, I don't want to interrupt. So I sat down on the top step quietly, trying to listen. I heard them talking, but I could only understand a few words: "She… You didn't… Sorry… Kiss or… Sorry." Their voices got louder and clearer. They are coming closer towards the stairs. They were probably down the hallway that ran along-side the stairs from the front door into the kitchen, but they moved into the living room, which was directly down to my right.

Things became silent for a moment aside from my mom's occasional sniffle and a few deep breaths.

Then she said softly, "When?"

There was a pause. Then Dad replied back, "Last Saturday night after I went to the bar with Donny." As he spoke, the words got quieter. You could hear the remorse in the tone of his voice.

This argument wasn't like the others. Normally, they were loud, and they would walk around the house with one walking behind and chasing the other, as if playing follow-the-leader. Then one of them would go outside to get some air and take a break before things got any worse than they already were, and the fight would be over. However, aside from Dad yelling my name earlier, this one was quiet and calm.

It was quiet for a few minutes. The couch squeaked as it shifted on the hardwood floors like someone was standing up. My mom walked down the hallway toward the front door. She opened the door, paused and started to turn back, but stopped herself and proceeded out the front door.

The fight was over, and I didn't gain much info on what this one was about besides the fact that Dad did something last Saturday.

I got up from the stairs, and as I turned around to head back to my room, the floor squeaked. I heard my dad get up from the couch and walk through the hallway towards the stairs, so I turned back around and took a step down the stairs. My dad was looking up at me with his big brown eyes from the bottom of the stairs and asked, "Where have you been?" hoping that I would say anything that didn't include me listening to them, like I was. But I'm only six, and I know that I shouldn't lie to my parents, so I answered truthfully, "Sitting here. Listening to you and Mommy." As I spoke, his fake smile turned to an ashamed frown. He looked down at the bottom step and ran his fingers through his dark brown hair.

He didn't say anything, so I asked, "What did you do last Saturday?"

He continued to stare at the bottom step. He moved his hand that had been resting on the back of his neck and put it over his mouth, as if it would stop the words from coming out so that he wouldn't have to tell me what he clearly didn't want to say. After thinking of a reasonable response, he looked up at me again and said, "I just had dinner with Donny."

Donny is a friend of my dad's from back when he played baseball, and they had dinner every now and then, so it didn't seem weird to me. I smiled and said, "Ok. Wanna see my new pictures?"

He seemed relieved that I didn't ask any other questions. "Sorry, sweetie, not now. Finish a few more, and then I will put them on the fridge with the rest." He started back down the hallway before I could say that I have already colored four more since he last saw my coloring book. I turned around and went back to my room to finish coloring Ariel.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer..** The characters and the song are not mine. The characters' names and a little bit of their background info belongs to the creator of Switched at Birth, one of my favorite TV series on ABC Family. The title of my story and the plot belongs to one of my favorite bands, Paramore.

**Please leave reviews.** I want to hear what you think so far.

**Chapter 2:**

My bedroom became darker as the night progressed. It was almost pitch-black now. I set down my yellow crayon that I was using to color Belle's dress and walked to the light switch next to my door. I flicked the switch up, turning on the light attached to my ceiling fan, and took a couple steps back towards my table, but I heard Mom sniffling and breathing heavily and the stairs creaked as she took each step. I turned around, walked out my door, and into the hallway. She walked towards me holding a tissue in her left hand up to her nose and stared down at me with her blue eyes as if pleading for me to save her. Her eyelashes were wet and clumped together and the tips of her strawberry blonde bangs were wet from where the tears had dripped onto them where they rested below and slightly to the sides of her eyes. I knew that she had been crying. She cradled my cheek with her right hand and brushed it gently with her thumb. Then she dropped her hand back down to her side, walked down the hallway to her bedroom, and closed the door behind her. Almost immediately after, she began crying.

I took a deep breath and yawned. I walked to my closet and opened the drawer with my pajamas, grabbed my black ones with red hearts on them, and changed. I put my dirty clothes on a pile that I had started a couple days before next to the foot of my bed. I walked back to my light-switch and turned on my panda bear night-light and turned off my big light. I walked to my bed, grabbing Polly the Polar Bear from my tea party table on the way, and climbed in. Normally Mom tucks me in "as snug as a bug in a rug" but I figured that night I could live without it. It was kind of hot anyways.

The next morning, I woke up bright and early. I was always the first one up in my family.

I hopped out of bed and ran down the stairs. When I reached the bottom, I noticed Dad sleeping on the tan couch in the living room. I quietly walked down the hallway. Every time I stepped, my foot stuck to the wooden panels. I reached the kitchen and walked around to the opposite side of the island and washed my hands. I took a few steps to my right and opened the fridge. I lifted the milk carton out of the door and took it to the kitchen table on the other side of the island. Then, I took a couple steps to the left and opened the cabinet. My mom always kept my two favorite cereals stocked. Lucky Charms and Cocoa Pebbles. I grabbed the Cocoa Pebbles box and set it next to the milk. I got a bowl and spoon and sat at the table.

When I finished eating, I put my bowl and spoon in the sink and as I was putting the milk back in the fridge, Dad walked into the kitchen and said, "Good morning, Bay."

"Good morning, Daddy," I replied as I hugged his leg.

I let go of his leg and he asked, "How'd you sleep?"

"Good. I didn't have any dreams though. Why did you sleep on the couch?"

He paused before answering, "I fell asleep on it last night watching a movie and decided to stay there."

"Ok. Wanna see my drawings now? I've colored seven more."

He smiled and said, "Sure."

"Ok! Wait one second!" I exclaimed as I ran down the hallway, up the stairs, down that hallway, and into my room. I grabbed my princess coloring book from the table and ran back downstairs to my dad. He had sat down at the table and began eating his Grape Nuts cereal. I set the book to the right of his bowl. I grabbed the scissors from the drawer to the left of the fridge and set them next to my coloring book so that he could cut out the pages to put on the fridge. He opened the book and cut out the three pages of pictures that I had colored on the front and back. Since there were three new pages, I had to take down three older ones from the fridge to clear space and free up some magnets. Then, I hung up the pictures of Ariel, Jasmine, and Belle.

Mom appeared in the doorway of the kitchen.

"Hi, Mommy!" I exclaimed as she crouched down and hugged me.

"Good morning, Bay. Did you eat breakfast yet?"

"Yup, I had Cocoa Pebbles."

She let go of me and stood back up. Then she said, "Ok. Why don't you go upstairs and get dressed? I need to talk to Daddy," as she stared down at me forcefully.

I said, "Ok," and grabbed my coloring book from the table and went up to my room.

I put on a pair of blue jean shorts and a pink t-shirt with white flowers on it that Mom had laid out for me on my bed. I put my pajamas on my pillow and walked over to my tea party table and sat down in a chair.

Mom walked past my door and Dad followed behind her saying, "Kathryn, please? I'm sorry. You know how sorry I…" his voice trailed off and became inaudible as they walked farther from my room and into theirs.

I flipped open the book to the next blank page and began to color Cinderella.

A little while later, Mom walked by pulling a black suitcase. My dad followed behind her again saying, "Please don't do this. It was a mistake. I feel terrible. I regret what I did." I got up from the table and followed behind them. My mom walked to the front door, opened it, and set the suitcase outside. She stepped back inside, holding the door open, and stared at my dad.

"Who's leaving?" I asked. My parents stared at me, then to each other, and back to me.

Dad said, "No one, Bay. Your –"

"Your dad is going on vacation for a little while." My dad, shocked, whipped his head around and looked at Mom. She avoided eye contact with him and continued to stare at me.

"Where are you going Daddy?"

He looked back at me and said, "I don't really know yet." He had a dejected look on his face and I could tell that he didn't want to go.

I walked over to my dad and he picked me up, hugging me. "I love you Daddy. Stay safe."

"I love you more. And I will."

"I love you most!" I kissed his cheek and he lowered me back down to the ground.

My dad turned and walked to the front door. He paused when he stood next to my mom and he looked at her, but she was staring at me still, doing her best not to look at him. I could tell that she was trying not to cry. Dad walked through the doorway and grabbed his suitcase. He took only a couple steps away before Mom closed the door. She locked it and leaned her back up against the door and began to let out all of her tears. She slid down the door so that she was squatting right above the floor. I walked over to her and hugged her. She stood up lifting me with her and carried me into the living room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer..** The characters and the song are not mine. The characters' names and a little bit of their background info belongs to the creator of Switched at Birth, one of my favorite TV series on ABC Family. The title of my story and the plot belongs to one of my favorite bands, Paramore.

**Please leave reviews!** I want to hear what you think!

**Chapter 3:**

One week passed without any communication with my dad. It was weird without him home. My mom wasn't as energetic as she normally was. She stayed in her room most of the time. As for me, outside of Kindergarten, I did my homework and colored in my room. I finished my princess coloring book, but hadn't gotten a new one yet, so I read, or at least looked at the pictures in, my book, The Royal Toad, before I got bored and started watching TV, which was rare for me. My parents never really liked the children's TV shows for my generation.

On Sunday, October 21, the day before my birthday, I was in the living room when I heard the doorbell ring. I ran to the door and peeked out through the minuscule gap in between the bottom of the brown curtains and the window sill next to the door. I saw my dad carrying a box with red wrapping paper on it and behind him was an even bigger box with the same paper. I flung open the door, ran outside and gave his leg a huge hug. "I missed you! How was your trip?"

He set the box down on the floor and picked me up, hugging me. "It was okay. Is Mom home?"

"Yes. She's upstairs in her room again."

He put me down and walked upstairs. I grabbed the small box and set it on the floor inside by the bottom of the staircase. Then I went to the larger box. However, because it was too big and oddly shaped for me to carry, I started to push it towards the house, but the wrapping paper on the bottom tore and I stopped. I didn't want to tear it more so I left it there. I left the front door open so I could keep an eye on the box and went back to the TV. I was watching "Spongebob Squarepants." It was really dumb, but I liked to look at all of the animation and drawings. I could draw every character almost perfectly.

A few minutes passed and my mom and dad came downstairs. My mom stood on the bottom step while my dad picked the small box up off the floor and set it next to me on the couch. "Wait," he said. Then he went outside and picked up the larger box. He brought it inside and set it in front of me. "Happy birthday! I know that your birthday is really tomorrow, but I want you to open these this morning so that you can have all day to do something for me rather than having to do it after school."

I looked at the boxes and back at my dad, then back to the boxes with a mile wide grin. I set the smaller box on my lap and ripped the paper off. The box had tape sealing it shut so my mom ran and grabbed scissors from the kitchen and cut it. I opened the flaps and inside was a plastic white paint pallet, an acrylic paint set with 20 colors, and a set of 10 paint brushes of all different sizes. I set the box down next to me and hopped up on the couch. I leaned over the back and hugged my dad. "Thank you so much, Daddy!"

"You're welcome. Open the next box."

I sat back down and pulled the big box closer to me. I ripped off the paper and on the outside of the box I saw a black and white – technically black and brown – picture of a painting easel. I screamed. I ran around the couch and hugged my dad again. He picked me up and wrapped his arms around me. When I looked at my mom, she was holding her right hand over her mouth, and her eyes were watering. My dad set me back down, and I ran to the easel. My mom cut the side of the box open, and I pulled out the collapsible easel. My mom and dad walked into the kitchen while I picked up the wrapping paper that was spewed across the room and threw it away. I went back to my easel and started setting up my paint set.

A few minutes later, my dad walked down the hallway. He hugged me, said, "Happy birthday, Bay," and gave me a kiss on my forehead. Then he left.

I went back to my easel, but I couldn't pick it up to take to my room, and I realized my mom hadn't come back from the kitchen yet. So I walked to the kitchen, and as I walked around to the other side of the island, I saw her. She was sitting on the ground, leaning against the cabinets, with her head lying on her knees. She was crying again. I walked over to her and held her like I remembered her doing for me when my fish, Lilo, died or when Skip was being beaten in the cemetery in the movie, _My Dog Skip_. That upset me every time. I knew that he lived afterwards, but it didn't matter.

After a few minutes of sitting and crying, she stood up and wiped the tears off of her cheeks.

Silently, she followed me down the hallway. I turned into the living room to play with my new paint set, and she went upstairs to her room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer..** The characters and the song are not mine. The characters' names and a little bit of their background info belongs to the creator of Switched at Birth, one of my favorite TV series on ABC Family. The title of my story and the plot belongs to one of my favorite bands, Paramore. I also do not own any of the restaurants mentioned. I also do not own the song lyrics in the second to last paragraph either.

**Please leave reviews!** I want to hear what you think!

Sorry it is so short. This chapter is just my way of fast forwarding through a few years, with a key part of the song and my story.

**Chapter 4:**

For my seventh birthday, aside from the paint set from both of my parents, I received a phone call from my dad and my mom took me out for pizza.

For my eighth birthday, my dad took me out to dinner and gave me new paint supplies, a digital camera, and fifty dollars. My mom took me out to dinner to Rainforest Café, one of my all time favorite restaurants, took me to the movies to see _Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over, _and gave me fifty dollars.

For my ninth birthday, my dad gave me a shiny, candy apple red bicycle without training wheels and a basket on the front, and we went to dinner at Red Robin. My mom took me to Rainforest Café again and gave me a jewelry making kit.

For my tenth birthday, my dad gave me a Labrador Retriever puppy to keep at his house and took me to Macaroni Grill for dinner. My mom took me to our traditional place, we saw _Dreamer, _and she took me on a shopping spree to spend fifty dollars on anything I wanted.

For my eleventh birthday, my dad gave me a necklace with real diamonds shaped into a heart, and he took me to the Cheesecake Factory. My mom took me to Rainforest Café, and I got my ears pierced along with a pair of ruby studs.

For my twelfth birthday, my dad gave me a larger painting easel and new supplies and took me out to dinner at Red Robin again. My mom and I went to the same place as always, and she bought me a computer to keep in my room.

For my thirteenth birthday, my dad bought me a cell phone, and we went to dinner at Uncle Howie's Pizza. My mom gave me fifty dollars and took me to Rainforest Café again.

For my fourteenth birthday, my dad bought me a new red bicycle with a metal basket on the front and a shiny silver bell with a red rose on the top, and we went to dinner at Red Robin. My mom and I went to the usual place, and she gave me a new pair of diamond studs and a necklace that had my name on it.

My dad seemed to get me a bigger and better gift every year as if trying to surpass himself from the year before. He would always make sure that my mom knew what presents he got me each year, too, like he was trying to impress her. Dad always invited my mom to the dinners, but she refused to speak with him unless it was a Sunday night and I was switching parents for the week.

My dad never dated new women, and my mother never dated new men. They both had people who flirted with them or asked them on a date every now and then, but neither returned the flirtation or ever went on any dates.

I saw my dad cry and curse at the wind. He broke his own heart, and I watched as he tried to reassemble it. My mom swore that she would never let herself forget. And I promised I would never believe in love if it does not exist.

The realization that my mom and dad had split up was hard on me. For the first few years, I had no concept of what was even happening. But at the ripe old age of fourteen, I understood that my dad had cheated on my mom with a lady from a bar one night, and she never forgave him for it, but he never gave up on her.


End file.
